Late Monday, European leaders agreed to strengthen fiscal accountability and surveillance in a bid to resolve the region’s debt crisis. They also agreed to launch the European Stability Mechanism, a more permanent rescue fund aimed at preventing the crisis from spreading. Read about the European summit

But downbeat corporate earnings and data canceled out some of the positive sentiment.

Aflac
AFL, -1.20%
which reported earnings after the bell, closed down 0.4%. The insurer reported fourth-quarter profit rose to $1.17 a share from 92 cents a share in the same period in 2010. Revenue rose nearly 13% to $6 billion. However, the company expects sales in Japan, a key market, to fall 2% to 5% this year following double digit growth in 2011.

Franklin Resources Inc.
BEN, -1.92%
slid 1.3% ahead of its scheduled first-quarter earnings release on Wednesday. Analysts surveyed by FactSet Research are forecasting the investment management company to report its quarterly profit fell 7% year-on-year to $2.08 a share.

Market sentiment was also pressured by economic data which showed American consumers were more bearish on the economy. The Conference Board reported its gauge of consumer confidence fell in January to 61.1 from 64.8 in December. Read about slipping consumer confidence

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